In a press release issued April 8, the Okanagan Naturist Association said 'in no way' do they condone the use of any public beaches in the Penticton area for naturist or nudist activity, except beaches previously appointed by the mayor.

The association wishes to make it clear that its members and the general public continue to use only public locations appointed naturist, more secluded crown land hiking trails or private locations for naturist related activities.

The group is also reaching out to the Three Mile Road community, noting an incident last summer where 'paid bullies' forced a clothed tourist from the beach. The organization is seeking to co-create a beach schedule with other beach users along with the City of Penticton and the RCMP to 'assure respect, etiquette and safety.'

The naturist organization also asked for a community effort to protect all users of the beach from any form of abuse that might potentially take place this summer.

To contact the reporter for this story, email Steve Arstad at sarstad@infonews.ca or call 250-488-3065. To contact the editor, email mjones@infonews.ca or call 250-718-2724.

OPINION At least part of me wasn’t sure I should write this, given what happened last time. It was August 15, 2003 and like many Thursdays before it, I was scratching around for a column idea. The summer newsroom